The fourth volume in Stefano Molardi’s authoritative collection of J.S. Bach’s organ works, this four‐CD release brings together some of the German composer’s most famous music. Chief among these is the Toccata and Fugue in D minor BWV565; with its unforgettable opening bars – doubled in the octave – flourished chromaticism, pauses and arpeggios on the diminished seventh, the piece has consistently drawn much critical attention. Some scholars have debated whether it was originally written for the violin, thanks to its astonishing virtuosity and use of parallel thirds and sixths, and others have questioned whether the composition was even penned by Bach himself.

Also included on this release are the ‘Neumeister’ chorales; assembled by Johann Gottfried Neumeister in the 18th century, the collection wasn’t actually published until the 1980s, with the result that these little‐recorded preludes still have plenty of room for a new interpretation.

Most impressive of all is the range of styles Bach covers in his organ works; from the northern toccata style – which the composer began to utilise after a stay in Lübeck – a working of several intricate fugues finished with a toccata‐style coda, to the mid‐German Sangerhausen style, featuring unusually dissonant harmonisations. Stefano Molardi has chosen the Thielemann organ in Gräfenhain, Thuringia, especially for this release; dating from the 1720s and therefore from the time of the composer himself, its captures the spirit of the great composer’s age, lending a certain authenticity to the performances and allowing for a vast range of styles both grand and intimate.